There are normally five main areas that you need to check if your Z88 does not work. Most of these items require Dismantling your Z88, but check the text before you get your screwdriver out.
Make sure that you follow the Inserting RAM or ROM Cards Rules as the Z88 gets confused on what size of memory it has if this has not been followed. Memory cards sometimes do go faulty. If they do, you do not need to dismantle the Z88 to fix them.
You can add more memory (RAM packs) by following the INSERT RAM/ROM procedure, any time. Whenever removing a RAM you need to do a Soft Reset. This will clear the FAIL message and all your files that you may have stored.
You can add programs (ROMs) by following the INSERT RAM/ROM procedure again any time.
Installation instructions usually start with a warning telling you to switch off and disconnect all power. Quite the opposite is true in this case... To install the ROM, take the following steps:
You should try to leave Slot 3 free for EPROMs as they can ONLY be used there. You can use any of the Slots for RAMs or ROMs except if you put a RAM in slot 3, your Z88 will use more battery power. I have found that the following combination works best. Slot 1 RAM. Slot 2 RAM/ROM. Slot 3 EPROM only. See Check Z88 Cards.
Installation instructions usually start with a warning telling you to switch off and disconnect all power. Quite the opposite is true in this case... To install the ROM, take the following steps:
Before removing an application you should first check that it is still not being used. To do this:
It is important to note that you should follow this full procedure even if you are installing another application afterwards.
If you were not in the INDEX when you removed the card, you get a continuous bleep and the error message INDEX on the right-hand side of the screen. If this happens, open the flap and re-insert the card in its original slot.
Note: Errors caused by removing a card can be rectified by re-inserting the card into the original slot from which it was removed.
Avoid excessive force. Be particularly careful not to damage the transparent cartridge cover - your Z88 will not operate without it! does not work.
You must treat this as two operations. If you take a card out, treat it as removing the application and close the flap first to let the Z88 know that you have removed it before opening it again to install the new one.
If the Z88 starts to bleep and displays message CARD in the top right-hand corner of the INDEX screen after you have inserted or removed a ROM, the above procedures have not been followed .
To clear this do the following
After inserting any card, it is a good idea to check that your Z88 knows about it by selecting (CARD) while in the INDEX.
The display should match what you have really got in the card slots. If this does not match, you have found another problem. Sometimes the EPROM is not shown. See Header on EPROM.
Another sort of memory failure only occurs when you are booting the Z88 from slot 1 and it just fails to boot. This is caused by an INTEL flash chip, it is NOT the software. If an old INTEL chip is being used, consider getting the more modern version, AMD or AMIC versions. They are faster and do not suffer from this fault.
This failure will not be detected by OZ when it is running, as it is a hardware problem. The INTEL chip is not quite fast enough for the Z88 hardware and can lead to a sporadic performance. Sometimes it works, other times it fails.